Sometimes that interstice can last a maddeningly long time. It's happened to me, and the only advice I can give is that if it goes on for more than a few months, it might be a good idea to take a little break and do something else for a bit, then go back refreshed.

Keep in mind that each time you go up the spiral, you know a little more, can do a little more than before, than when you were lower on that spiral.

It feels like a spiral, for sure.
I did have an interesting experience - we had a self-defense seminar at work, you know, with eye gouging, groin-kicking and big giant styrofoam heads. Nobody asked us about our backgrounds, and I was really curious how it would work. It seems to have broken the "spell" - it was great to see how all the training applies in a situation when the expectations and the setting is completely different than the dojo. They did surprise attacks from the back, and I also got to play with two of them at one time. The center and the focus was right there, and I did not get sucked in but could keep calm. I guess it just helped put things in perspective on a very physical level.